# Po Sein

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**Po Sein** (Burmese: *ဘိုးစိန်*, pʰó sèiɰ̃; 18 April 1882 – 11 January 1954) was an influential 20th-century traditional leading [Burmese dance](/source/Burmese_dance) actor in Myanmar Drama Event and singer, who has been credited with innovating and modernizing Burmese performance arts, in dance, song, costumes, and stagecraft.[2] He also established the Mandalay-based performance troupe, "Sein Maha Thabin" (*စိန်မဟာသဘင်*), which remained family-run until 1993, when it was closed by his grandson Ye Sein.[3]

## Innovations

Po Sein was particularly successful at introducing a variety of stage innovations, by explaining the changes to audience and interacting with them throughout the performance.

Also, he adapted the Buddhist [Jataka](/source/Jataka) tales, which had previously been exclusively performed by marionette puppets, for live actors, by creating dances and songs as part of the performance repertoire.[4] Until the late 1800s, it was considered taboo for live actors to depict such sacred stories of the previous lives of the [Buddha](/source/Buddha).[4] His innovations led to a decline in the popularity of the marionette theater troupes, by breaking their monopoly on Jataka plays.[5]

Furthermore, he revolutionized Burmese stagecraft by incorporating a raised stage for dramatic performances, which had been previously confined to marionette theater, which uses a raised platform (hence the name *amyint thabin* or *အမြင့်သဘင်*).[6]

He modernized the classical dance drama form, *zat pwe* (*ဇာတ်ပွဲ*), by adding variety acts, chorus lines, introducing admission. He was also the first male lead to have intimate onstage interactions with the lead actress, which has since become a norm in couple dances.[7]

### Costumes

Po Sein is credited with introducing [stockings](/source/Stocking) and [slippers](/source/Slipper) as part of dancers' costumes; they had previously danced barefoot.[4] He also introduced the modern costume worn by comedians (*lupyet* or *lu shwin daw*), which consists of a checkered [Taungshay-style paso](/source/Longyi) (sarong) and a loose jacket (previously, comedians had performed shirtless).[4]

### Controversy

During the 1920 national boycott against the British administration, he was involved in a controversy for dubbing Mandalay boycotters as "young rebels" in a local newspaper.[8] Students in Mandalay and Yangon responded by boycotting his performances, forcing him to later apologize.[8]

## See also

- [Burmese dance](/source/Burmese_dance)
- [Anyeint](/source/Anyeint)

## References

1. Various sources list his birth year as 1882, 1880 or 1882.

1. Sein, Kenneth Maung Khe & J. A. Withey (Spring 1966). "The Great Po Sein: A Chronicle of the Burmese Theatre". *Antioch Review*. **26** (1): 140–142. The Antioch Review. [JSTOR 4610749](https://www.jstor.org/stable/4610749)

1. Diamond, Catherine (Spring 2009). ["A Delicate Balance: Negotiating Isolation and Globalization in the Burmese Performing Arts"](http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/the_drama_review/v053/53.1.diamond.html). *The Drama Review*. **53** (1): 1054–2043. [doi:10.1162/dram.2009.53.1.93](https://doi.org/10.1162/dram.2009.53.1.93). [S2CID 57564331](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:57564331)

1. Diamond, Catherine (2000). ["Burmese Nights: the Pagoda Festival Pwe in the Age of Hollywood's 'Titanic'"](http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayFulltext?type=1&fid=3032132&jid=NTQ&volumeId=16&issueId=03&aid=3032124&bodyId=&membershipNumber=&societyETOCSession=). *New Theatre Quarterly*. **29** (3): 227–248. Cambridge University Press. [doi:10.1017/s0266464x00013865](https://doi.org/10.1017/s0266464x00013865). [S2CID 190693966](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:190693966)

1. Brandon, James R. (1967). *Theatre in South-East Asia*. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press. p. 224.

1. Brandon, James R. (1997). *The Cambridge guide to Asian theatre*. Cambridge University Press. p. 16. ISBN 978-0-521-58822-5.

1. ["U Po Sein"](http://www.answers.com/topic/u-po-sein#ixzz1V9Bm9xkm). *Oxford Encyclopedia of Theatre and Performance*. Retrieved 16 August 2011.

1. Kyaw Aye & Aye Kyaw (1993). *The voice of young Burma*. SEAP Publications. pp. 29–30. ISBN 978-0-87727-129-1.

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